When shopping, keep in mind the Environmental Working Group’s 2019 update about the fruits and vegetables most important to eat organic—among those, kale, strawberries, spinach, and more. See the Dirty Dozen at https://www.ewg.org/foodnews/dirty-dozen.php

We’re fortunate here that much of the produce at our markets is also organically grown.

To get an idea, the Monterey County Weekly’s “Complete Farmers Market Bible Summer 2013” by Mark C. Anderson and Eduardo Cuevas indicated specific number of organic growers at each of the local markets. Mark’s 2017 and 2016 update doesn’t specify organic growers, but you may expect to find more organic growers than ever.

Market locations

Salinas is known as the Salad Bowl of America/the World. And throughout Monterey County, you will find a tantalizing farmers markets in one of our local communities on most days of the week. Locations include the Alisal/East Salinas, Carmel, Greenfield, Marina, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Salinas, Seaside, Soledad, and others.

For days and times, check the markets’ websites (below, see Mark Anderson’s guide and the bulleted list that follows it). Also be aware that occasionally website times for the various farmers markets have not reflected seasonal changes (e.g., the Old Monterey farmers market hours are 4-7 p.m. October through April, and 4-8 p.m. May through September–as their website now specifies). When in doubt, rather than assume the most current info is on their websites, give their contact number a call.

Haven’t biked or walked Seaside’s West Broadway Urban Village? Seaside’s Saturday (as of March 2019) farmers market is a great excuse to get out and do that.

Who bikes to a farmers market?

Annabelle Bull’s bike basket was full of fresh produce

when she caught my eye at the MPC farmers market in August 2010. She had biked to that market to pick up ingredients for pickle-making. Here she is on another August day at MPC, biking off to do her family’s marketing again! Annabelle, a Brit who now resides in Monterey County, clearly hasn’t given up the joys of cycling as she grew up; see Bicycle Culture and Youth for more about that. (Photo of Annabelle courtesy of Joanna Bull.)

Thank you, field workers

Only because of the labor of individuals, like those pictured below, does fresh produce get from the fields to the farmers markets and other outlets.

Beyond fresh produce

Not only are farmers markets the best place to buy fresh local produce, at many markets you will find other local foods, too (e.g., seafood, honey), along with prepared food booths, crafts, and street musicians! These are a fun cycling destination and a great way to mix with the local community.

Try a bite!

And as you meander along the aisles, you are often invited to sample the yummy produce and other offerings.

The vendors are friendly and helpful. Especially in the less hectic periods, many are happy to take time to offer tips on storage, meal preparation, and more.

Parking

If you’ve tried to find vehicle parking on farmers market days here and have been frustrated, you know one great reason to bicycle to the market: much easier parking. See “How to do it by bike” below for tips!

A healthy hang-out spot

Farmers markets are truly bursting with life. They are a great place to hang out with old friends, or make new ones.

Pals Sidney Ramsden-Scott and Jacquelyn Smith meetup with young Sierra Dehmler at the Monterey Peninsula College (MPC) market.

Laurie and Tom Coke’s popularity is partly due to their delicious, organically grown produce, and partly due to their kind, calm, caring manner.

How to do it by bike

Parking your bike:

Once you arrive at a farmers market, because of heavy pedestrian traffic at these popular weekly events, it’s usually best to lock up your bike and walk the aisles without it. In some cases, where there isn’t heavy pedestrian traffic, it may be fine to walk your bike through the market instead. Common sense will tell you which is the case.

Bike through? Biking through these markets is usually not recommended, and in most cases, it isn’t allowed.

Be mindful of the safety factors that come into play when carrying even a little cargo, or something as simple as a purse; see “Personal Safety” and “Shopping” sections of this guide.

A solution that I’ve used for a big shopping (or to avoid heavy items, e.g., melons, squashing delicate items like berries and tomatoes) is to park on the outskirts of the shopping district, then bike over to get what I need with my little daypack, returning to the car to unload as needed. This is an example of how bike-and-ride can be so practical.

Yet another option, of course, is to do your marketing on more than one day a week—as is so commonly the practice in many European and other countries. With our multiple farmers markets in Monterey County, that’s definitely a viable alternative.

Kristin Meagher on the bikeways near Wharf II.

That’s a short bike ride from the Alvarado Street Tuesday market and the MPC Thursday market.

Kristin’s all set for a farmers market stop–that daypack can hold a nice stash of yummy Central Coast produce.

Bon appetit!

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Bike-and-ride–for daytime or dark

Here’s a reminder of why farmers marketing–or any shopping–can often benefit from bike-and-ride options.

Living in a rural area requires biking isolated roads, so returning home at night by bike isn’t appealing. That’s another time when bike-and-ride can be great. And in my area of the county, there is no evening bus service, so a bike rack on the car is an especially helpful bike-and-ride solution!

Just park the car at the edge of town and bike all over to do errands. Then bike back to the car, load up bike and stuff, and get home comfortably in the dark by car.